The Great Malaysian Fish and Chips Hunt

This week on our merry travels we visit Bröom Artisan Bakery & Kitchen in Taman Paramount. This is one of the ever-popping-up cafés and restaurants that appeal to the content creator class of our species; you know them, they're the ones sitting there with their MacBooks open all the time, nursing a cup of coffee for 14 hours; those ones. As you can tell, I'm quite cynical about these types of places, but we have to be honest in our reviews and go to places that we would never normally darken their doors. So, we order and wait for our food, which promptly arrives in a woven box. Now, considering how I already have a preconception of these types of places being all style over substance, bringing an Irishman his fish and chips in a woven box isn't a good start—and it goes downhill fast from there. It's plainly obvious from second one that the fish is cooked from frozen; the batter was soggy and the fish itself dripping with water when we cut into it. If you're goin...

I’ve had a few fish & chips in my time, and the version at  Sid’s Pub @ Plaza Damansara  gives me good reason to pull up a stool again. It doesn’t completely revolutionise the genre, but there’s enough here to make it a solid go-to when the craving hits. First impressions & presentation Walk in, and the place feels comfortably pubby — warm lighting, wood tones, casual chatter. The dish arrives looking clean and promising: a generous fillet of fish, long crinkle-cut chips, a wedge of lemon, tartare sauce on the side, plus a small scatter of fresh greens to lift things — simple, classic, no pretentious fuss. Taste & texture Fish : The fillet was well-sized, moist inside with a flaky texture. Probably a white fish — cod or similar — mild, clean taste. The batter coating was crisp enough on first bite, though towards the end (especially on the edges) it softened slightly (as such things do), but it survived the journey to the table without sogging totally. Batter : Lig...